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Nepal stalls on LGBT rights despite early strides

Nepal was hailed a leader in LGBT rights when it became the first country in conservative South Asia to recognise a third gender and assure equality for its sexual minorities. Rukshana Kapali shows her school leaving certificates, one of them recognising her as a boy But more than a decade later, that trailblazing reputation has lost its lustre, with gay and transgender Nepalis still confronting obstacles to jobs and schools, and marriage equality a distant prospect. More than 900,000 of Nepal’s roughly 26 million population identify as a sexual minority, according to LGBT rights group Blue Diamond Society. On paper, they enjoy some of the most progressive protections and rights guaranteed by law in the immediate region. Landmark reforms in 2007 prohibited discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and recognised gay Nepalis at a time when homosexuality was still illegal in neighbouring India. Transgender Nepalis identifying as neither male nor female were also granted the right to tick “other” when voting or applying for a passport or other official documents. But gay and transgender Nepalis and rights activists say action has not matched rhetoric, and more than a decade on, the community still faces discrimination. “The government recognised our identity but has not been able to put forward a concrete policy or plan to give us rights that all citizens enjoy,” said Blue Diamond Society president Pinky Gurung. “It is heartbreaking that to enjoy one right (citizenship), we have to be deprived of other opportunities.” Rukshana Kapali, a transgender… [Read full story]